Customer Reviews

The Dark Side of the Game - My Life in the NFL

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Tim Green was an unusual defensive end for the Atlanta Falcons. He read books in the locker room and during team meetings. He went to law school in his spare time. He had a hard time gaining weight and keeping it on. He left the game with his body and his brain relatively unscrambled (despite many concussions and stingers), and took up a new career as a broadcaster for Fox. His book is a series of mini-essays on everything you always wanted to know about pro football, but never wanted to experience. It is a gripping tale of pain, broken bodies, shattered lives, and electric moments that will remain with you for the rest of your life. I would have graded the book higher, but he did seem to skirt some of the obvious problems that professional football players experience such as groupies and deliberate attempt to maim. On the other hand, I found the book more revealing and better balanced than the "hero" biographies and the "broken life" tales that pro players usually produce. It is the most enjoyable book I have read by a retired NFLer. If Mr. Green had also been retired from broadcasting when he wrote this, he probably could have been more candid. Perhaps an updated version will appear in the future.

For those who are interested in Deion Sanders, the book has a very interesting portrait of the man which will add to your appreciation of his remarkable career and his character.

Many of the most valuable parts of the book describe all of the things that teams do that create failure. Correctly, Mr. Green pinpoints the ultimate cause of these problems as being the owner. You have to have a coach and a general manager who want to have the same style of play. Only the owner can ensure that will happen.

Two things were very new to me. First, the players find the game far more exciting than I would have ever imagined. Some of the descriptions are very vivid. Going into the stadium during the introductions is apparently way beyond an adrenaline rush. It is a feeling that most of us will never experience in our lives. Second, I was surprised by how much pain permeates the lives of the players. There's even a section encouraging you not to squeeze a player's or ex-player's hand hard in a handshake, because of the on-going pain they have from hand injuries. On television, the players all seem to unaffected by pain. That's apparently an act. In reality, they wallow in pain.

Because the book is broken up into different topics, you can skip to the subjects that interest you. But check out some that don't sound very interesting as well. Mr. Green has many valuable things to say. He is both intelligent and articulate. He also cares about improving the game.

If you have sons, read the section about whether or not you should encourage them to play football. I don't buy his argument, however, that soccer causes more injuries than football. My experience as a soccer coach was just the opposite with the children and teenagers I knew.

He obviously sympathizes with the players, which most fans do also. But he praises the praiseworthy wherever he finds them, and attacks many of the villains.

After you read this book, I suggest that you think about how you could change your work to make it more exciting and valuable.

If you don't like things as they are, change them!

I've been waiting for a dry-eyed look at the current state of the NFL, its players, coaches, front offices and officials.

Unfortunately, this book isn't the one. The title entices us with a promise of a "look behind the scenes," but most chapters (in reality, many are 1-2 pages long [!?]) contain information that could be easily obtained from the local newspaper or USA Today.

A typical chapter might begin, "People always ask me what it's like to [insert activity here] in the NFL. In reality, it's no different from any other job." Well, if that's the case, why write a chapter, let alone a book? I understand that Green is trying to demystify the league and its players, but it's difficult, if not impossible, to praise and criticize the league simultaneously. Say what you want about Howard Cosell, but he didn't flinch when it came time to lower the boom on pro football, a sport that he loved and covered for so many years. Green pulls way too many punches in this book.

Green keeps too many people anonymous in his "exposes" of incidents involving former teammates, coaches, or front office types. Nobody likes sour grapes, but after a while all the shadowy figures start to look the same. How 'bout a name or two to help us visualize, Tim?

Most humorous is the (unintentional) contradiction drawn by Green himself between the book's title and his introduction, in which he states, "I have no agenda here." Seems to me that the subtitle of the book would dictate that Green address directly problems like steroid use and 'name names.' I read passages like "it's a problem, the league knows about it, and there's no easy solution" too often for my taste.

I'm not laying all the blame at Green's feet for the lukewarm nature of this book. He has a TV job, his friendship with former teammates and coaches, and future books to protect, and I understand that he's not willing to jeopardize all or even some of that. However, a look at the "dark side" has to go beyond how to skip 3 weeks of training camp.

Very refreshing. Not the rah-rah, market-driven NFL mythology that you get from so many other commentators. Green takes a very matter-of-fact, no-nonsense approach. The Steve-Young-vs-Joe-Montana essay alone is worth the price of admission.

There probably isn't a boy in the USA that has not dreamed of playing in the NFL. Kids on the playground with a Nerf ball imitate the greats, Joe Montana, Brett Farve, Walter Payton, Steve Largent.... From our childhood, the idea of playing in the NFL is a romanticized notion that is pounded into our heads by parents, TV, and celebrity commercials. However, throughout our childhood and for many, even through adulthood, we have no idea what it is really like to put on the coveted jersey and run out on that field. Few stop to think of the emotional, physical, and personal sacrifices that must be made just to be an average player in the NFL.

The Dark Side of the Game is an insiders look at life in the NFL. Based on the title, I was expecting a behind the scenes memoir of the wild nights, drugs, womanizing, and crime that fans thing goes in the NFL. However, the book is more of a "blog". The book is a series of 69 essays, each roughly 2 to 4 pages. The various stories told in the book don't seem to have a rhyme or reason to the way they are presented. The stories seem to be a bunch of random thoughts. Reading the book almost feels like reading a person's blog or notes on MySpace or Facebook.

The author touches on a wide variety of subjects. Despite the seeming lack of structure to the book, the book is an enjoyable read. One of my favorite sections was a section that dealt with dating and finding mates. Obviously, not everyone is Brett Farve or Joe Montana. The author talks about how most of the guys in the NFL do not have women falling all over them and actually need to work quite hard to get a date. Another chapter I really liked was a chapter on Deion Sanders and how much of what the public saw was an act in order to make himself more exciting and desirable from the fans perspective.

The author also expresses his views on why he feels preseason games are useless, why NFL players hate training camp, what it is like to be on a losing team, why players are glad to lose in the post-season, the lack of padding players wear on the field, and a myriad of other topics.

Personally, I did not care for the essay or short story approach to this book. However, it only takes a few minutes to read a section or chapter, so the book was nice to read in the car while waiting to pick up the kids or is a nice book to have in the bathroom.

I think the book offers a great perspective of the NFL from someone who has been there. The book covers a lot of topics I had never stopped and considered before. I liked the fact that the author didn't have very many negative things to say about other players. Even if the topics were not all that interesting, I found Tim Green to be an exceptionally talented writer. If you are a casual or average NFL fan, this book is probably worth picking up. If you are a die-hard fan that lives and breaths football, I'd recommend passing on this book and maybe picking up a memoir of your favorite player.

An interesting look at what goes on with players.


The parts dealing with injury, pain and the processes players have to go through to get into the league are some of the better content in this book.

Green is somewhat critical of the NFL, but when it comes to the crunch, given he was still involved with the game, soft-pedals the hard issues as far as actual details, proof, or any of that sort of thing as far as illegal activities and cheating goes.

Still, those interested in the NFL at a deeper level will find this worth a look.

Excellent insight into big time football. Tim Green is on his way to the writer's Superbowl.

this is a good football book from a player perspective. the author is knowledgeable, and writes a good book. i could not put it down, and read it fairly quickly. it's not a 'glorified' tale, either.

Tim Green is a former defensive end for the Atlanta Falcons. His autobiography of what he went through, saw, and felt in the National Football League is eye-opening.

Most of the information in here is a well known fact, or has been thought to happen by many hard core fans and players. Mr. Green's confirmation of these facts make it all the more chilling.

Some of the stories in here are quite amazing. One part of the book describes how players escaped the detection of steroid abuse.

This novel is the most important, and best football book in my collection.

When I bought "The Dark Side Of The Game" I expected to read a book about... (ready?) the dark side of the game. I expected to smell, taste, and feel what it's like to be a player in the NFL. I expected to hear all about the unrelenting schedules, the practices without pity, the meaness of coaches, and the ficklness of fans.

Instead, what What Tim Green supplies us is collection of unrelated short articles that seem to be saying, in summary, that football is hard and all season season the players are constantly sore. Thanks, Tim, for that blinding glimpse of the obvious.

Don't get me wrong: I didn't DISlike this book. It was a fast, easy, and relatively fun read. But after reading the book, I don't feel like I know what it feels like to play in the NFL. Heck, I don't even REALLY understand why the title says this book is about the DARK side...

So go ahead and buy the book. Read it in a couple or three nights. Just don't expect to feel like you've "been there" vicariously. At least I didn't.

I had hoped that Tim Green would've addressed some of the really dark topics of the game such as organized crime influence, throwing games, etc. But the subjects he hits on were very informative and give some good insight as to what it's like to play football in the NFL. He paints a good picture of all the ups and downs of playing and gives fair warnings to all young players fortunate to rise to the pro level. Alot of his opinions are colorful and relevant and the book is very readable with many short chapters each packed with unique information. This is a must read for anyone who loves the game.